Knowing God - Part 2

When a believer decides he wants to know God better, that is an important first step. The previous post examined the futility that would arise if the increasing knowledge of God could be achieved only by man's desire and efforts. Such knowledge is available only as God chooses to reveal Himself to man. God is gracious to grant that knowledge, however, to those who seek to know Him. For the next several posts, I want to look at man's side of the equation. What can a believer to do put himself in a seeking position so that God can reveal Himself?

The answer to that question comes down to one central truth. God reveals Himself through His Word. (Romans 1 reveals that God puts some level of God-knowledge intrinsically within the heart of man and that nature also reveals God, but even the knowledge through those means depends on the Bible for full understanding.)

"So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ" (Romans 10:17). What is faith? Faith is what we believe to be true, in particular when it is something that we must choose to believe even when we cannot see it. We cannot see God with our physical eyes. We cannot literally observe His hand at work, nor can we see a visible display of His attributes in the same sense that we do with people. Our faith, or belief, in what God is like comes as we hear His Word and see Him revealed through its pages.

I believe that many Christians are seeking to know what God is like (or are basing their opinion of what He is like) on their own personal life experience. While God's interaction in the lives of Christians does reveal His character, personal experience is not the primary method God has chosen for revealing Himself. In the first place, this basis is flawed, because man cannot see the whole picture. Man does not know how each incident in his life fits into his whole life experience, nor does he see how his life intersects with the greater plan of God. Because of this incomplete and limited knowledge, a view of God established through this method is often faulty. This focus on personal experience leads to some dangerous and errant statements, such as the following:

          "I don't think God would . . ."

          "I think God is like a fountain/rainbow/cloud/nature/etc."
          "God did X to me, so that means He is . . ."
          "I see God as . . ."
          "Your God might do X, but my God doesn't."

Christians can come up with such varying portrayals of God, in fact, that children or unbelievers could be left in confusion. One person believes that God is all love; another believes that He is all justice. Some believe God is actively involved in the world today, while others see Him as withdrawn and disinterested. How can all of these statements describe the same God? They can't. Those humanly-construed pictures of God fall short and contain error because they are not based on what God says is true about Himself. There may be little or no truth in these statements that are in essence nothing more than man's opinion formed through faulty or limited observation.

God is who He is. He is not a different God for one person than He is for another. He does not change based on what man's mind imagines. He does not change at all. The ancient pagan gods were unpredictable. They could decide to prosper mankind or they could fly into a rage at the slightest provocation (or no provocation, for that matter). God is not changeable or unpredictable. He remains the same through time and eternity. Therefore, what He reveals about Himself through the Bible is valid information for every believer in all times.

The Bible is the reliable source for knowledge about God. The Bible is His book in the sense that He wrote it, and it is also His book in the sense that it is all about Him. From cover to cover it reveals His actions and His character. The most authoritative source for knowing anyone is his own words. In considering a historical figure, an autobiography (provided the author is honest) is the best source for knowing the truth about him. The author knows himself better than anyone else does. God always tells the truth, so the book He has written about Himself is the best source of knowledge about Him.

Any commitment to know God better must be closely linked with a commitment to study God's Word - not just read, but study. For real profit and progress in the knowledge of God, the believer cannot read blindly. He must read with purpose and with a goal in mind. Too often Christians have a habit of skimming over a passage and doing nothing else with it. They don't stop to ponder, re-read, or take notes. People don't do this with the pursuit of any other knowledge. Anytime someone really wants to learn about a topic, he gives diligence as he reads and studies. The same must be true in the pursuit of God. Without purpose, many hours spent shallowly in the Word will produce only a shallow knowledge of God.

"You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; it is these that testify about Me." John 5:39 (NASB)